Author's Notes: I fell in love with this anime when it came out this past winter. In fact, it was my very first anime that I watched. I instantly could relate to the show, as I remember having my first crush in middle school, and all the flirting and teasing that went along with it. Now a senior in high school, this show really made me think about how much I miss my childhood, and how much of it that I neglected to enjoy. The OVA recently came out in early July, but I really do hope this show gets a second season. I actually drafted this story out back in June, as I was feeling a little empty about the show being over. Now, it is my very first fanfiction. Forgive me for any misspelling or format issues. I am still figuring out how this website works, and I am also an amateur writer. Depending on how well this story is received, I may write more in the future. For now, enjoy.
The Dance
Nishikata nervously walked into the gymnasium of the school. Right away, his nerves got the best of him, and he had already begun to tremble.
"Jeez, why did I let the guys convince me into coming?" Nishikata frantically thought to himself.
He gazed around the gymnasium. PE classes were cancelled all week so that the gym could be modified for the party, and it seemed tons of work had been done. A DJ was set up towards the back wall, and surrounding it were dozens upon dozens of dancing kids. The lights of the gym were shut off, but hundreds of smaller lights and streamers illuminated the whole room. The bleachers were also filled with kids, some gossiping, some resting, and some crying into their hands, probably the result of rejection.
It was all a bit too overwhelming.
"Maybe i should just leave...the guys won't even notice." Nishikata begun to shuffle out, before a large hand grabs his shoulder. It was his friend, Nakai.
"Nishikata! Where are you going? Don't tell me you were about to leave?" Nakai chuckles.
Nishikata scrambled to catch his cool.
"What? No, I was actually looking for you guys."
Nakai puts an arm around Nishikata and begins guiding him.
"We are all over here. C'mon."
Nishikata is relieved to see a large group of his friends gathered in a spot at the bleachers. They are all crowded around Takao, who is laughing at something on his phone.
"Yo, Nishikata!" The group of boys say in almost perfect unison.
"What's up guys? What are you looking at?" Nishikata asks as he takes a seat to join them.
"Oh, just some water parks that will be open in the summer. We should all go together." Kimura responds.
"That'd be awesome!" Nishikata exclaims. He could feel himself relaxing already. Maybe the dance isn't so bad.
"You thirsty? They are giving out sodas at the stand by the DJ. Wanna go get one?" Nakai offers.
"Uh, yeah, let's go." Nishikata hopped down from the bleachers and starts for the soda stand with Nakai.
The two boy gently shove their way through the crowd of dancing kids. The music plays loudly in the air, rattling their ears. They finally manage to reach the stand.
"Alright, let's see what I want. Uhhhhh." Nakai brings a finger to his chin, getting lost in his thoughts.
Nishikata took a quick moment to glance around again. He can see that there are a few couples walking around together and holding hands, or dancing together.
"Hey Nakai, where's Mano-san tonight? Wasn't she supposed to be your date?" Nishikata asks, still looking around.
"Ah, she's gonna be a little late. She's not really great with time and getting ready." Nakai answers, while attempting to pick a drink.
As Nishikata's eyes scan the room, he comes across something that makes his heart skip a beat.
Takagi-san
She stands elegantly with a group of her friends, wearing a blue dress that gives off somewhat of a sparkle. Her hair is tied up into a high ponytail, which bobs and sways with the movement of her head. Her face….young and alive as always.
Nishikata can suddenly feel his nerves gaining on him again, and he can't remove his eyes from her. Suddenly, Takagi looks in his direction, and identifies him right away. Nishikata begins to choke up, expecting her to laugh or pull some stunt. Takagi stares for a moment, and a warm smile appears on her face.
"Hey, I'm talking to you dude!" Nakai lightly punches Nishikata in the arm.
"Ooowww! Nakai, what have we said about you punching us?" NIshikata complains, rubbing his arm in pain.
"Sorry, I forgot, I'm too strong. Anyways, what soda are you getting so we can get back over to the guys?" Nakai asks, chuckling.
"Erm...I'll just take this fruit one." Mishikata says as he grabs the drink. "Uh, I'll be over in a second, I need to do something first."
"Alright, sure thing." Nakai nods, before walking off into the crowd.
Nishikata looks back over to where Takagi was. Her friends still stand there, but she is no longer there.
"What? Where could she be?" Nishikata talks to himself again.
A feminine finger pokes him in the ribs from the side.
Nishikata jumps and bursts in laughter, clutching his sides. He turns around to see Takagi, laughing at his suffering, as usual.
"Hi, Nishikata." Takagi says, her eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Oh, hi Takagi-san." He blankly responds, sighing deeply at another defeat.
"I got you there, didn't I?" Takagi asks, giggling.
Nishikata lets out a mixture of a sigh and a growl.
Takagi takes a step closer.
"Hey, you said that you weren't gonna come tonight. What happened?"
"Uh, I don't know, my friends convinced me to come, so I'm here for their sake." Nishikata responds, rubbing the back of his head nervously.
"So then, you lied to me?" Takagi asks with a smirk.
"What? No, it's not like th-" Nishikata is interrupted by Takagi's laughing.
"Relax, you should be having fun." Takagi assures him. "Hey, how about a challenge?"
Nishikata's nervousness disappears again.
"Ha! Now you are talking! What is the challenge?" He asks confidently, building up hype.
"Well, I see you have a soda, so we will have a drinking contest. Whoever finishes first, wins." Takagi proposes.
"Alright! Let's go get you one then!" Nishikata laughs in anticipation, as he walks over to the soda stand.
Takagi walks up beside him, and gazes over the various different sodas.
"Hmmmm, i guess I'll get what you got." She says as she grabs a can identical to Nishikata's.
The two step away from the stand.
"Okay, ready!? On three. One. Two. Three!" Takagi starts off the challenge. The two kids open the cans and begin to drink deeply.
Nishikata chugs the can, laughing in his head. "Haha, there's no way Takagi-san can beat me in this! It even looks like she is struggling right now!"
Takagi suddenly stops drinking, and looks Nishikata in the eyes.
"Hey, Nishikata. By the way, if I win, you have to dance with me when the slow dance song comes on."
Nishikatas eyes shrink and his heart skips a beat. Before he knows it, he chokes on the soda, causing it to burst from his nose and mouth. He hacks as the bubbly liquid stings at his throat and nostrils.
Takagi quickly lifts the soda can to her mouth again, downing what little soda remained.
"Aaaaahhhhhhh!" Takagi exclaims as she raises her arms in triumph.
Nishikata barely manages to speak through his hacking fit.
"No fair! You can't just say that!" He complains through his coughing.
Takagi's face switches from triumph to concern.
"Hey, are you okay? Can you breathe alright?"
"It's fine. It just went down the wrong tube is all." Nishikata says, the cough now diminishing.
"In that case, I win!" Takagi begins to laugh.
Nishikata seers with anger, and thinks to himself in his head once more.
"Grrrr. Damn Takagi-san always winning the cheap way! But now that means….I have to….slow dance with her?" His anger quickly turns to fear.
Suddenly the music stops. The DJ picks up a microphone and begins to speak.
"Alright everyone, let's slow it down a bit! Nice and slow…" The Dj announces in a rather smooth voice.
Nishikata looks over to the dance floor, and sees dozens of couples coming together, embracing and slowly rocking to and fro. He shifts his eyes back to Takagi, her eyes are large and gleaming, locked with his.
"I….we….maybe we shouldn't, I mean-" Nishikata can barely say before Takagi takes him by the hand and leads him to the dance floor.
Takagi brings them directly to the middle, and twirls around to face him. Nishikata can feel himself almost sweating. He looks around to see the couples holding each other closely and tightly.
"There's no way we can do this! I mean….we aren't even a couple! Plus, Takagi-san would probably make fun of me for even touching her!" Nishikata's thoughts race.
"Nishikata?" Takagi softly calls out to him.
"Um, Takagi-san, perhaps we shouldn't-"
Takagi cuts him off again.
"You lost the challenge. You have to accept the 'punishment'." Takagi says, an almost stern tone in her voice.
Nishikata sighs. Slowly and dreadfully, he reaches his hands out, awkwardly placing them them above Takagi's hips. Takagi confidently and calmly wraps her arms gently around Nishikata's neck, pulling him closer to her.
"There we go!" Takagi exclaims in delight.
Nishikata cannot help but shake nervously, and swallows deeply.
"Hey Nishikata, relax, I promise no more teasing for the rest of the night." Takagi says, warmly.
"Why? Why is Takagi-san being so nice? It's kind of weird." Nishikata thinks to himself, as he slowly begins to calm down. He finally manages to look her in the face. Her large hazel eyes stare into his, with a sort of hypnotic look. She smiles as they begin to rock and sway, just like the other kids.
"Our faces are so close….ugh, please let this be over." Nishikata continues to think to himself.
"Nishikata." Takagi says softly.
"Yeah?"
"Do you think that we met by chance, or that fate brought us together?" Takagi asks, keeping her eyes locked in a gaze with his.
"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Nishikata asks. He knows exactly what she means, but he can't admit or give in. It's just another trap that she will use to tease him.
"I mean, you found my towel, was late to class just so you could return it, and just happened to be seated next to me in class. It just sounds like something out of a romance story….I don't know." Takagi says, she breaks eye contact briefly, and manages to hold back a blush.
"Ha, now that I think of it, that does sound kinda crazy." Nishikata gives in. If this is gonna be a genuine moment between him and Takagi-san, he can't let his mind mess with him. "I guess you can call that fate."
"Yeah, that's what I always thought of it." Takagi says, and the two share a small laugh.
"What is going on right now? What is this? Why am I feeling tingly inside my chest?" Nishikatas mind races once more. He finds her eyes locked with his once again. He can't help but feel that something is pulling him and Takagi-san together. Then, Takagi closes her eyes, and begins to lean her head forward. He nervously gulps, but can't help but feel compelled to do the same.
Suddenly, the slow song abruptly ends, and loud, eccentric music begins playing again.
The two open their eyes, and Nishikata jerks his head back.
"Sorry….I-" He stammers, his hands still on her hips and her arms still around his neck. Another warm smile appears on her face.
"Nishikata, thanks for dancing with me. I don't think I'll ever forget this."
Nishikata can feel his heart flutter.
"Yeah, haha, um….I don't think I will either."
Suddenly, Nakai slams into Nishikata, causing him to let go of Takagi and fall to the floor.
"There you are Nishikata! C'mon, let's go dance with the guys!" Nakai lightheartedly commands.
Takagi laughs at the sight of this.
"Okay, Okay, ouch!" NIshikata stumbles to hsi feet, rubbing his arm in pain from being slammed on the ground.
"C'mon!" Nakai yells as he runs off.
"I'm coming…" Nishikata dusts himself off, before glancing back at Takagi.
Takagi simply looks back, her head slightly tilted to the side, a smile and a small blush on her face.
"Have fun!" She giggles.
Nishikata gives one of his signature blushes before turning and running after Nakai.
As she watches him run off, she breathes deeply, and can feel herself quiver. The group of her friends quickly runs up to her.
"Takagi! You missed the slow dance! Where were you?" One of the girls eagerly asks.
"Oh, I didn't miss the slow dance….in fact, I think I got the full experience." Takagi's lips tremble slightly as she continues to watch Nishikata run off, smiling as he reaches his friends.
"Well, come on, let's go dance!" The girls begin laughing as they run off.
Takagi breathes deeply, regaining her composure, before running off to join her friends.